University of Staffordshire’s Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Professor Philip Plowden argues that closer collaboration between universities, colleges and employers is essential if the region is to develop its talent and deliver economic growth.
“If there’s one thing everyone knows about our new(ish) Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, it’s that he was the Mayor of Greater Manchester. No one is therefore particularly surprised that at the heart of his stated policies is the return of political and economic decision-making to the regions, with a focus on delivering growth.
Naturally his Ministers are orientating accordingly, and at the recent Universities UK conference it was pleasing to hear the Skills Minister, Jacqui Smith, name-check both Staffordshire and Keele universities for our partnership with colleges – in this case, the Newcastle and Stafford College Group.
She’s right; education and training need to march together, in sync, so that anyone who wants to learn or to progress their career, has the opportunity to do so. If we don’t develop our talented people, we won’t be able to deliver growth in our region.
There’s nothing new in this, of course; the University of Staffordshire was founded almost 120 years ago as the Central School of Science and Technology to support the development of the industries in our region. It is no accident that the frieze over the Cadman Building, which dates from that period, depicts miners and potters – or that that building now houses some of the key modern industries – Computer Games, Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity.
The central thread here is partnership working – with colleges, with public bodies, and with industry and the professions. Let’s focus particularly on that partnership working with business and industry. I saw its potential at first hand at the Business Awards which the University of Staffordshire hosted earlier this month; almost 400 people, from a huge range of different employers across our region, gathered to celebrate their individual or collective successes.
New businesses, small businesses, large businesses – the range of activities was astonishing. From high tech materials engineering to innovations in the visitor economy; from the hospitality industry to ceramics. It was impressive to see the sheer variety of different businesses, most of whom are growing and looking for a skilled and engaged workforce.
In some cases businesses will be prepared to source and train up their own workforce. Other businesses will look to take bring on board graduates, either with specific qualifications that will enable them to have an immediate impact, or with the potential to learn and grow with the business. And many will look to the apprenticeship route, with a formalised training regime sitting alongside the experience of immediately putting that knowledge into practice.
It’s easy to think of universities as only delivering graduates; but universities like Staffordshire will often have a deep experience in supporting apprenticeship programmes, often working alongside college partners to ensure a joined-up pathway for young learners. At the Stoke on Trent College Awards dinner earlier this summer, I had the privilege of sharing a table with a young man who was thrilled to be starting his Quantity Surveying apprenticeship with a major company in a couple of weeks’ time. It was clearly the right decision for him, and it was great to see these options being available.
But for universities to be able to ensure that their graduates have the right balance of skills and knowledge, and that their courses are informed by the most up to date developments in industry, we need to work closely with businesses throughout the year. At the University of Staffordshire every one of our courses is designed with input from the relevant industries, professions and sectors – but staying up to date requires an ongoing engagement.
We need professionals to come in and help our students understand the reality of work in their field. And we are ensuring that every student, on every course, has the opportunity each year for real-world engagement – whether through placements, internships or industry projects.
We work hard to deliver this, and it’s reflected in great employment statistics – and recognised by the University of the Year award at this year’s Academic Employability Awards, and an important factor in the award of the Modern University of the Year in the Daily Mail league table.
We are proud to represent our city and region and we see ourselves as important players in ensuring that business, industry, the professions, the public sector have the workforce that it needs for the future, and that our region retains the talented young people who will be its future.
We can only do this by working in partnership with industry, celebrating its successes, and ensuring that our courses deliver rich and rewarding careers for our graduates and apprentices. It’s right that the Minister name-checked our region’s universities, and we are proud to work in partnership with you.”
University courses and college courses don’t equip students for a working life. Quite a lot of students get their degree and never used them. A one year diploma course should be available through colleges and universities with different aspects not all covering the same things cherry picking courses. They’re a very few courses offering agriculture where people can learn to grow their own food. Britain needs food security all the computer skills in the world will not put food on your table. Enough can be learnt on a one year diploma course to give you a good job.